"Baby moon"

Betsy and I were lucky enough to be able to borrow "the cabin" for the weekend. We enjoyed every minute of it!

A quick history of this special place... McCall Idaho (ski town USA), a beautiful, once sleepy little town of about 3,000. In 1973 (or there about) my Aunt Jackie and Uncle Mike, together with my parents bought a little round house for a get away. I have many, many fond memories of times spent up there, exploring the surrounding woods, skiing and later snowboarding, hiking, fishing, swimming... trips with my family, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.... it is truly a special place for me. This was Betsy's fifth trip up there, and she is extremely happy to be banking happy times in the round house.

Enough about the structure, this was a trip to relax and do, well,... nothing. The tamaracks were fully golden, the leaves on the deciduous trees were past there prime but still glorious, the crowds nonexistent and the weather was perfect. Cold and crisp in the mornings, warm in the afternoons. Betsy was able to occupy here time with one of her favorite past times (sleeping), and I took a couple walks along some of the paths of my youth.


One of the highlights, besides all the rest and relaxation, was a trip to little Payette lake. There is a small dam to fills up this shallow lake (I didn't know they have kokanee, small mouth bass and pike, I will have to come back with my flyrod!), but being late in the fall, the water was low and sandy beaches were exposed. Just right for lounging and relaxing!





I took this picture of the sunlight filtering through the trees like light through a cathedral.

We ate too much at "the pancake house", a McCall tradition ($2.50 for the cinnamon roll, can you believe it?) Thanks Aunt Liddia for the Reformation Sunday treat!

Played in the sand...


And sadly left the cabin, once again,.... hope fully to return again soon!

Names article

I found a good article on current baby naming trends that I wanted to share.

http://lifestyle.msn.com/your-life/family-parenting/articleab.aspx?cp-documentid=11257635&page=1

While it doesn't discuss the use of adjectives for middle names, I think that's just because Betsy and I are on the leading edge..... and I was releived to not see our top choice name in the article.

We are off to another baby appointment in less than an hour.

Baby class

Betsy and I were in a baby class all yesterday. We both enjoyed it for the most part, and we both learned quite a lot.

This was the class where you watch videos of the mother's labor and the actual birth. It was amazing. Both our eyes were a little misty...

From my perspective I learned how to help more effectively.

I think it calmed Betsy's anxiousness about the actual birthing process quite a bit.

But it made us all the more anxious for the little guy to arrive!

Here are some tid bits that I shamelessly copied and pasted:

Week Thirty-Three

• Amniotic fluid is at its highest level during your pregnancy.
• Your baby's head size has increased 3/8ths of an inch due to rapid brain growth.
• Neurons and synapses are developing in huge numbers -- forming connections in your baby's brain will give him the skills he needs to thrive as a newborn. This week, he may be able to coordinate sucking and swallowing with breathing.
• While most of his bones are hardening, his skull is quite pliable and not completely joined. The bones will be able to move slightly to make birthing easier.
• You baby takes intermittent deep breaths -- of water! That's okay, though since she gets oxygen from the placenta. This breathing exercises muscles and encourages her lung cells to produce more surfactant (a protein essential for healthy lung development).
• If your baby is a boy, his testicles will be descending from his abdomen into his scrotum. Sometimes one or both testicles won't move into position until after birth.
• Your infant is now 17.2 inches (43.7cm) long and weighs 4.23 pounds (1918gm).

Third Trimester -- Congratulations! You're in the homestretch! Right now you may be bubbling over with excitement -- this is the time of decorating the nursery, baby showers, childbirth classes, and packing that suitcase to head towards the hospital! As the anticipation rises though, so may those feelings of anxiety -- maybe even a bit of fear. Don't worry, as all these emotions are perfectly normal.

This pregnancy is suddenly very real. That due date that was once so far away is looming ever closer. Your baby is making his or her presence known with karate kicks, twists and turns until there simply is no more room. You may find yourself alternating between discomfort and bursts of energy. Be sure to cherish these last few weeks together with your baby nestled so snugly within your womb. From birth on, time appears to speed up.

Babies born this trimester have an great chance of survival with all major organs functioning! Consider the third trimester as the one where the finishing touches are added. By the beginning of this trimester your baby will have all of his/her bones -- 300 to be exact! Now he'll be building fat stores and muscle mass. Your baby's hair will be growing, replacing the lanugo that protected her skin in the womb. By the end of this trimester your baby will be approximately 7 pounds in weight and about 20 inches long. Her lungs mature right up to birth so don't become too anxious to deliver early. Each day in the womb (up to 42 weeks gestation), helps prepare your little one for the world outside!


Things on our to do list include:

1. pictures for the nursery.... we found a couple cute monkeys at TJ Max we thought might work, but now we aren't so sure....
2. We want music to be a part of the birthing experience for two reasons. One, music is a celebration and we want to celebrate(!) and music will help Betsy to relax,... so we are putting together an iPod playlist for the big day.
3. Pack "the bag." Probably not something we need to do today, but something in the next couple weeks, because yo never know!

Thanks, as always, for tuning in.

Getting ready and anxious

Less than two months to go before the due date. We are excited, nervous, anxious... as perhaps only those who have been expecting parents can understand.

We had a great visit with the soon to be Grandma Phyllis last week. She graciously recovered the rocker chair pads, made curtains and other goodies here and there.

Betsy also had her first baby shower, hosted by Phyllis and Katie Miller. Filled with fun games, good food and friends, Betsy felt very, very blessed and overwhelmed with love. A big thank you to those who came and celebrated, those who weren't able to be there and especially to those who hosted! The picture on the right is a blast from the past... a couple previous room mate of Betsy's.

The doctors appointments continue to be good and she (Dr. Knutson at St. Alphonsus hospital) has been great at answering what questions we have and reassuring us that the baby is healthy!

The recovered chair and the 99% finished nursery. We just need to hang something on the walls. We received an awesome handmade changing table thanks to my dad, "Grandpa Dickie".

We also enjoyed Michael's pot o' crab!

Those are my baby shoes my mom (Grandma Linda) found in an old dusty box and put into a nice shadow box.